"A wider scope of view, and a deeper insight, may see rank, dignity, and station, all proved illusory, so far as regards their claim to human reverence, and yet not feel as if the universe were thereby tumbled headlong into chaos." (Nathaniel Hawthorne, _The House of Seven Gables_)

Are you a word wiz?

As you can see from our definition, "illusory" is related to the English word "illusion." Which of the words below are also related to "illusory"?

A. magic, magus

B. sorry, apologetic

C. delude, ludicrous

D. illustrate, illuminate

"Illusory" comes from the English word "illusion," and "illusion" is related to "delude" and "ludicrous" through its root word, "ludere," a Latin verb meaning "to play, to mock." You can see some of the root's meaning in each of the word cousins we've mentioned. "Illusory" and "illusion" both refer to something that is a mockery of something real. "Delude" comes from the Latin prefix "de-" and "ludere," which combine to mean "to mislead the mind by trickery or play." And "ludicrous" comes from a grammatical form of "ludere," and describes something that is such a mockery or absurdity that it is laughable.